Getting to Know Jesus #1

 We've been focusing on Luke's Gospel and the questions he has been answering for Theophilus about Jesus. When we come to chapter 4, when Jesus is ready to begin His ministry, we really begin to get to know what Jesus is all about:
 And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness 2 for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And he ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, he was hungry. 3 The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” 4 And Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone.’” 5 And the devil took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, 6 and said to him, “To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will. 7 If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” 8 And Jesus answered him, “It is written,
“‘You shall worship the Lord your God,
    and him only shall you serve.’”
9 And he took him to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, 10 for it is written,
“‘He will command his angels concerning you,
    to guard you,’
11 and
“‘On their hands they will bear you up,
    lest you strike your foot against a stone.’”
12 And Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’” 13 And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time.

Why did Jesus, the Christ, come down from heaven to live on earth? To fight sin and the tempter on our behalf.  This is Jesus' first activity after His baptism: to confront Satan and take back turf. This was no brief walk in the park - in fact, the last verse tells us it did not end there: it continued throughout His time on earth. But Jesus successfully said no to every temptation and lie of Satan: all the attacks on our identity and purpose, and God's sovereignty and love: Jesus took down every lie with truth, in our place, forcing Satan to leave Him alone so He could take back territory: the souls of people who desperately needed Him. It will help us understand more about Who Jesus is and what He says and does if we will view Him in Luke's eyes as the One who came to bat and do battle on our behalf.